Now ever since I moved to Frostburg I've had wild berry bushes in the backyard. At the first house we lived it there were a few berry bushes on the edge of the woods on our property and I was able to harvest a few each year. Now at this house we have another berry bush on the edge of the woods and I was able to fill a very small bowl with berries this time, but as I cut back the bush and work with it, I think next year we'll have a lot more.
Initially I made cheesecakes in jars and topped them with the berries. They were seriously awesome. Then I had some on my yogurt in the morning which was another creamy, sweet, and tart combination. For my final creation with the blackberries I've been dreaming of making a berry lemonade. I have no idea why other then I've seen some beautiful photos lately showing glasses of lemonade and with the summer heat I've been craving them.I didn't have a recipe for the lemonade but the concept of making lemonade is simple. Fresh squeezed lemon juice, sugar, and water. That much I could handle. Then I started thinking about the dreaded calories and having too much sugar and so I used part sugar and part sweetener. I then pureed the blackberries and added them to the mixture. I tossed in a few fresh blackberries and had a beautiful deep pink lemonade. It was so pretty that I poured it into our crystal glassed for my husband and I to drink it.
It wasn't overly sweet and the blackberries and lemons added a tartness. It was extremely refreshing and I was lucky enough to be able to take a big glass into work with me for 3 days after I made it. I can't wait to make it again with another type of berry!
Blackberry Lemonade (a Hezzi-D original)
4 or 5 lemons
1/2 c. sugar
6 packets of Truvia
1 c. fresh blackberries
water
1. In a small saucepan combine the sugar and Truvia with 1 cup of water. Heat over medium heat until the sugar has dissolved. Remove from heat and cool slightly.
2. Cut the lemons in half and squeeze the juice from them. I squeezed them over a small bowl so that I could pick out any seeds that fell into the juice.
3. Pour the fresh lemon juice along with the blackberries into a food processor. Process until a puree has formed.
4. Pour the puree into a 2 quart pitcher. Add the water and sugar mixture. Pour cold water into the pitcher until it is full. Mix well with a wooden spoon.
5. Refrigerate until ready to drink. When ready to drink fill a glass with ice and pour the lemonade over top. Add a few lemon slices and fresh blackberries as a garnish if desired.
Now for the giveaway! I'm giving away two wonderful prize packages to two different readers. The first package is from Bob's Red Mill and they are giving one reader a package which includes my four favorite products from their company. One winner will receive Graham Flour (search for it on my blog-this is my current favorite flour!), Gluten Free Vanilla Cake Mix, Quinoa, and Medium Grind Cornmeal.
The second package is from Tasty Bite. They graciously donated six packages of their all natural Indian and Pan Asian foods to give to one of my readers. Included will be Channa Masala, Ginger Lentil Rice, Kung Pao Asian Noodles, Pad Thai Asian Noodles, Madras lentils, and Jaipur Vegetables.
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**TastyBite and Bob's Red Mill provided the products for my giveaway but any opinions about either product are my own.**
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